Flourless “Crack” Brownies from Real Sustenance

by Susan on January 25, 2012

photo courtesy of Real Sustenance

Don’t judge me for the name of today’s treat. It’s taken directly from the recipe that I was obsessed to try ever since Brittany at Real Sustenance posted it last week. Her blog is one of my personal favorites, as everything she shares is free of gluten and dairy… PLUS she has a big sweet tooth like me!

Brittany’s “Crack” Brownies are essentially layered brownie bars, with the bottom a baked brownie and the top a no-bake nut butter concoction. She posted two options for the brownie portion, one made with egg and the other not. I went with the latter, as I wanted to share an option for my vegan readers. I also used carob powder, but cocoa powder would work great and yield a more authentic brownie.

I’m curious to try to brownie base with egg next time, as I’m betting it will yield a fluffier bottom layer.

For the nut butter topping I used almond butter, coconut oil, palm sugar, and almond flour. Once the mixture was a bit cool I stirred in about a cup of Enjoy Life dairy-free chips. I also stirred in some shredded coconut and about 1 tbs. of flaxseed. The kids could not stop sampling from the pot!

our pan of good stuff, hanging out in the freezer with the veggies

I popped my pan right in the freezer, and did find that keeping them chilled made them easier to cut. The kids preferred to eat them once the chill from the freezer wore off a bit, but I liked the firm texture and chilly crunch!

We had a couple of extra mouths over, and EVERYONE thought these were delicious. Apparently Brittany was correct with the “crack” moniker!

I highly recommend trying out some version of this recipe. If you’re not quite as obsessed as me with allergy-free and organic ingredients, there are tons of ways to make these bars both simply and inexpensively. What I really like about Brittany’s site is that she provides so many options and substitutes that suit any personality and allergy, from low to high maintenance. Any kind of sugar would work, any nut butter (including sunflower seed if you’re allergic), and so on.

Other than trying out the brownie base with egg, I also want to experiment by mixing in the girls’ favorite gluten-free Mesa Sunrise Flakes to get a little crunch out of the top.

If this treat isn’t proof enough, Real Sustenance is definitely a blog worth following! She has two gluten-free cookbooksavailable for pre-order on Amazon that I can’t wait to get my grubby little hands on.

Wow, very innovative brownie recipes – this makes baking so much more fun! I tend toward gluten-free brownie mixes because I do best on a low-sugar diet which means I bake dessert infrequently, and as a gluten-free traveler I often tuck one into my suitcase. I write a travel blog where I write on the best gluten-free chocolate brownie mixes: http://travelsketchwrite.com/2011/12/06/best-gluten-free-chocolate-brownies/